Home GERRY ADAMS: Report from Oireachtas Committee will boost unity referendum calls
"POSITIVE SOUNDINGS": Voices, including those from political mainstream, have been raised to support Unity case

GERRY ADAMS: Report from Oireachtas Committee will boost unity referendum calls

July 29, 2024 by Gerry Adams

THIS summer the momentum behind the demand for constitutional change and for the Good Friday Agreement commitment to a unity referendum has dramatically increased.

The very successful Ireland’s Future event in Belfast several weeks ago, the all-island economic conference by Sinn Féin’s Commission on the Future of Ireland, the emergence of a small but resolute grouping of United Irelanders from within Northern Protestantism and the positive soundings from an increasingly vocal pro-uniting Ireland lobby in the 26 counties, including from some within the political establishment, means that hardly a day passes without the issue of Irish unity being raised in the political discourse.

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Last week’s publication of the report from the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement – ‘Perspectives on Constitutional Change: Finance and Economics’ – marks a new and decisive moment in the unity debate. The Joint Committee includes eight TDs and six Senators representing all of the major parties in Leinster House, as well as independent voices. Its report makes for remarkable reading.

Its starting point is the Good Friday Agreement which for the first time ever created a peaceful and democratic path to the achievement of constitutional change through referendums North and South. Immediately after last year’s 25th anniversary of the Agreement, the Joint Committee began holding a series of meetings to explore what a united Ireland would mean. The report, published on 16 July, represents the consensus conclusions of all of the participants and represents a fundamental shift in mapping out an agreed strategy for achieving Irish unity.

It examines the economic relationship between the two jurisdictions and the potential of the all-island economy. It looks at the likely cost of Irish unity and the need for the Irish government to build a consensus on the future shape of a united Ireland. In this respect its call for the government to begin immediately planning for a referendum on constitutional change marks a striking change in the approach of the political system in the South. Its conclusion is best summed up in the final sentence of the summary of the report which states: “Preparation for referenda on Irish unification will be a historic task. The Committee calls for preparation to begin immediately”.

For this process to be successful the Joint Committee calls for a whole of government approach, led by the Department of the Taoiseach, and involving all government departments and state agencies examining the implications of constitutional change. The Joint Committee recommends that a government Green Paper should be published setting out a vision for a united Ireland. Such a paper will require widespread consultation to ensure its conclusions reflect a consensus on the way forward.

In preparing for the unity referendum the Committee emphasises the key role of the civic engagement that occurred around referendums in recent years, including the use of Citizens’ Assemblies – “Engagement should take place on a sector-by-sector basis. These forums should be as inclusive as possible”.

The report also stresses the importance of an inclusive approach that can facilitate participation by “vulnerable groups and sectors of society that are traditionally underrepresented in policy making” including reaching out and securing engagement from unionism.  And it makes a series of recommendations for increased North South co-operation to include:

·         Education, including measures to facilitate teachers crossing the border or working in both jurisdiction throughout their careers, including supports to meet the Irish language requirement for primary school teachers.
·         Further and Higher Education, including reducing barriers to cross border student enrolment particularly for students from the North studying in the South and strengthen North/South co-operation on apprenticeships and training.
·         Energy and on climate action, including increased co-operation through Strand two of the Good Friday Agreement that builds on the progress of single electricity market.
·         Transport infrastructure, including implementation of government commitments on the A5 as soon as possible.
·         Attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), including closer co-operation between the IDA and Invest NI and part of this should be to ensure greater benefit for areas outside of Dublin and Belfast benefit from FDI.
·         Civil service and governance, including developing a North/South exchange programme for civil servants.

Republicans will find much in this report that dovetails with our own policy proposals in recent years and our thoughts on the planning for unity. But like the Good Friday Agreement producing recommendations is one thing, getting them implemented is an entirely different matter.

Therefore it is vitally important that all of us who advocate for Irish Unity read this report and recognise its singular significance in the current constitutional debate. The Joint Committee report provides a historic opportunity and challenge to shift the conversation on Irish unity into a substantially higher gear.

Uachtarán Shinn Féin Mary Lou McDonald TD put it well when she welcomed the report.  “The report acknowledges that there are no insurmountable economic or financial barriers to unification. The economic success of a new Ireland is in our own hands. What is needed now is detailed and ambitious preparations. Our task is to build a consensus on the vision for a new and united Ireland. Preparing for such a referendum is a historic task and a huge opportunity that requires significant groundwork and a well-prepared constitutional pathway.”

Watch An Seanadóir Rose Conway Walsh talk about the report on Facebook. 

Any oul tickets knocking about?

There was a time back in the day when I was able to get a ticket for All Irelands. In those days getting a ticket was part of the build up to the big day. It was great fun. Stressful and challenging but great fun nonetheless.

My first All Ireland was in 1960. I didn’t have to worry about a ticket that day. I was only twelve. My Uncle Paddy took care of all the logistics. We went by rented car which was a novelty in those days.  Down won and I still have a clear memory of standing on the terraces as Kerry was dispatched and Sam Maguire came over the border. That’s what my Uncle Paddy sang all the way home – “The cups coming over the border, the border, the border, the border”.

Gerry and Martin at the All-Ireland

Gerry and Martin at the All-Ireland

In those days it was possible to lift a child over the turnstile for free entry. I don’t recall if that happened to me in 1960 but for ages in the late 70’s and 80’s I used to lift our Gearóid over the turnstile. Sometimes he would be accompanied by cousins but the match stewards were very tolerant and as long as we had a couple of tickets between us they made us welcome. Many a great game was enjoyed by us. Then understandably health and safety concerns kicked in and all this changed. Rightly so.

That’s when tickets became even more precious. And more expensive. The new Croker stadium followed soon after but it was still possible to wrangle tickets. There was great competition on the ticket front as well as on the playing fields, especially as the Ulster teams started to dominate the football championship. My friend Father Alex Reid was a great Gael. He was usually catered for by the Rice brothers but even he had to seek divine intervention when that source dried up. An old friend of mine in County Louth looked after me for years.  Of course, with Father Alex and myself, the hurling games were the big contests.

And then I got elected to the Dáil and with that came an invite from Croker to the Ard Chomhairle section so I fell out of the habit of scrounging for tickets. Martin McGuinness got a similar invite by virtue of his elevation to the Office of First and Deputy First Minister and we spent many a happy All Ireland together. That’s when Martin was won over to the thrills, skills and sheer superiority of hurling.

All Ireland Sundays in Croke, for both codes and for Ladies Football and Camogie are super. I don’t travel there so much these days. It’s easier to watch on television and I’ve yet to adjust to the new July finals schedule. I was at the Tailteann Cup semi final recently supporting Antrim’s footballers and although the result was disappointing it was a great day out. I was seated behind a big contingent of young Laois fans and the craic was ninety.

I did try to get hurling tickets last week only to find that all my old contacts are dead or without influence. Just like myself. I left it too late. The tickets weren’t for me so I wasn’t too disappointed. Now as we go to print I’m being plagued by Armagh and Galway supporters. Ach well I don’t blame any of them for chancing their arm. I’ve been there. Done that.

So if you have any spare tickets give me a shout. Le do thoil. 

 

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